Teacher Education Alternative for Chicago

Difference is at the heart of NU-TEACH (Teacher Education Alternative for Chicago), a program of Northwestern University's School of Education and Social Policy in collaboration with the Inner-City Teaching Corps (ICTC), and the Chicago Public Schools.  NU-TEACH is a different path to teacher certification for career changers.  Instead of the traditional route, NU-TEACH participants take a fast track.  Following a summer of course work at Northwestern in innovative, inquiry-based curricula, along with supervised student teaching in Chicago schools, they head their own classrooms for a year under the mentorship of a master teacher.  Successful completion of the year results in an initial alternative certificate, permitting them to teach in Chicago for four years before applying for a standard certificate.  Read about Revette Thomas, an innovative Chicago teacher, among the first cohort of the NU-TEACH program.

An undergraduate degree with at least a 3.0 grade point average and a passion to become a teacher are the main requirements for NU-TEACH applicants.  Those interested in the program are typically midcareer adults.  They teach in the Chicago Public Schools through ICTC/UNITE.  Other NU-TEACH participants are recent college graduates who teach in Chicago parochial schools through the ICTC Volunteer Corps.  In either case, NU-TEACH participants want to teach but were concerned about the time and salary loss of becoming certified.  They earn a full first-year teacher's salary, and some may be eligible for federal financial aid and tuition scholarships as well.  A limited number of fellowships is available each year.

NU-TEACH started in summer 1998 with 30 interns, and the program has grown each year, placing dozens of talented teachers in Chicago elementary, middle, and high schools.

NU-TEACH will have an impact beyond Chicago classrooms.  It also collects data about alternative approaches to teacher training, designs innovative curricula, and conducts research on how people learn.

Read more about NU-TEACH and high school physics teacher Jon Shemwell, who recently has received national board certification.


Testimonials by recent NU-TEACH participants:

"I spent several years doing basic science research at Northwestern Medical School, and now I use that background to give students real-world examples of the concepts I am teaching." 
Former molecular biologist Shannon Goodwin now teaches environmental science and chemistry at Von Steuben Metropolitan Science Center.

"Even though the program is intense, I believe it's the best route for a midlevel career change. I'm really using my creative juices. I love teaching. It's a challenge because each child learns in a different way, but all children can learn-and it's my job to motivate and inspire them to do so." 
Darnell Garner, a former insurance salesman, is now teaching fifth grade at Higgins Community Academy

"Teaching is something I've always wanted to do, but I doubt I'd have given up a high-tech career if it hadn't been for this program. I investigated the regular graduate school route [to teaching], but it would have taken a very long time." 
Della Leavitt, who has degrees in mathematics and computer science and management, was an account executive for a data network company. Now she's teaching high school math and science at Von Steuben Metropolitan Science Center.